• Year: 2023
  • Game: Company of Heroes 3

Download

Nistymon, or more correctly “Ennistymon“, is a charming village nestled in the picturesque West of Ireland. While World War II saw no battles on the Irish shores, the unique geology and natural beauty of the cascading waterfall and its surroundings inspired my choice for this setting. Having personally traversed and spent ample time in this area, I sought to encapsulate its distinct features and form a digitally immersive playable space.

Bringing a one-to-one recreation of real-life locations into a game often falls short of creating an enjoyable experience. To optimize gameplay, I’ve scaled down the size, eliminated houses and roads, and introduced new connections where reality doesn’t align. This approach pays homage to the spirit of the location, even incorporating elements like the railway and train station, which have long since vanished.


The level excels from both team perspectives, as the river effectively divides the map, creating a natural frontline that must be pushed or held, depending on the chosen game mode. Various areas within the level offer distinct experiences, from open-field combat in the northwest and southeast, ideal for longer-ranged vehicular battles, to the central town area characterized by narrow streets and garden warfare, favouring foot soldiers. It’s not a binary choice, as all units can traverse any terrain, but achieving the right balance ensures an enjoyable experience for all preferences.

Courageous endeavours often yield great rewards. Pushing across the bridge with determination can lead to seizing a strategic chokepoint, cutting off vital resources from the enemy team. These pivotal locations are on both sides of the river has the potential to sway the outcome of the battle, but be forewarned, it will be heavily defended.

Below are 2 videos of matches. There isn’t any better way to appreciate how the level flows without watching the game in action. The videos play from both teams perspective, so you can visualize the attack / defence lines from either direction.

Sadly the video embed quality is poor, you have to manually set it to 1080p.

A brutal defence we held onto where the AI had most of the map. We won after 90 crushing minutes.

A balanced game where the river held the battle line with each team barely making advances.